We might marvel at the progress made in every field of study,but the methods of testing a person's knowledge and ability remain as primitive as ever they were.It really is extraordinary that after all these years, educationists have still failed to devise anything more efficient and reliable than examinations.For all the pious claim that examinations test what you know, it is common knowledge that they more often do the exact opposite.They may be a good means of testing memory, or the knack of working rapidly under extreme pressure, but they can tell you nothing about a person'strue ability and aptitude.
每一个学科领域所取得的进步都可能让我们称奇，然而用于测试一个人的学识和能力的方式却仍和从前一样原始。经过这么多年，教育者们仍没能创立出一种比考试更有效、更可靠的方法，这实在是不可思议。尽管有很多人虔诚地宣称考试可以测出你掌握的知识，却有这样一个普遍的共识，即考试所做的往往与之相悖。考试或许是一种测验记忆力的好方法，或许是测验在极端压力下快速工作的诀窍， 但是它却不能说明一个人真正的能力和资质。
